It’s about this picture scanned by a stranger on the West Coast of the United States whose husband is a very distant relative. I won’t write about it so if you are interested you will have to read the sequel which has three posts.

Post 604

That’s a lot of posts since September 2009 on this blog about our ancestors and genealogy.

I never got around to post this one.

I wrote it in November 2011. I believe Fran, who is this man’s descendant, is the person who wrote me.

Jean-Baptiste Alexandre from Joe’s collection

Jean-Baptiste Alexandre or J. B. Alexander Junior is the brother of these two beautiful young women seen here on Joe’s collection of cabinet cards.

Myra Alexandre

Philomene (Phoebe) Alexandre

J. B. might be also this other young woman’s brother.

I will probably never know who she is even I try to figure out how she is related to the Alexandre family.

Start reading…

Another far away distant relative of mine has just appeared out of the blue.

She had this picture among many others and what she wrote is this interesting comment…

I looked at the photos of Agnes and the third one from the left, the two sisters, this is the picture I have that say Myra and Phebe. When I looked at the attachment that Joe sent on these women I see that the birth ages are not consistent with the names on the photos. So my photo is the same as yours, I shall now get out all the pictures I have on this family and see if I can match any. I look forward to more of the same.

It was a draft article about two sisters and how I found out who they were after a two-year search…

I had kept it in store for the right occasion to post it on the blog.

Having posted it by mistake, I have decided to follow-up on this unintentional post.

Since I won’t be posting anything new on this blog until next September, unless some of Arthur LaGasa’s descendants come forward, I have decided to reblog some old posts so new readers can see the scope of all the research I have done since September 2009 when I started to write this English version of my blog about genealogy.

This story is quite similar to the story of Delia Roch or Delia Roche that we think is on this old picture…

Koeni LaGasa started the whole thing.

Really!

I had nothing to do about it.

I think this woman is Delia, but I am not 100% sure, not even 50%, not even 25%.

Being 25% sure is just half the fun of searching for lost ancestors…

START OF THE OLD POST (EDITED VERSION)

I don’t believe in spirits, ghosts nor do I believe in reincarnation.

Well maybe spirits… and I can keep an open mind on reincarnation.

Myra Alexandre died in 1958 when I was 10 years old.

I have never met her. Myra was living in the United States and I was living in Montreal in 1958.

22 October 1902

I had heard when I was a child that my grandfather Léo Lagacé Senior once had lived in the U.S.

That was the only link between Myra and I.

I did not know Myra had ever existed before 2010 when my third cousin Sandy first contacted me on Ancestry. Since then I have found almost everything about Myra’s life, even met one of her grandsons and had breakfast with him.

So this is the closing chapter of young Myra Alexandre.

Joe had this cabinet card in his collection when I met him last September. Joe and I went on a scanning frenzy.

Sandy had the same picture of Myra in her collection in 2010. We did not know it was her at that time.

We had few clues.

This is why we had called this young woman Bristol late 1890s.

Sandy had also these.

Phoebe (Flavie) Alexandre Lestage and Myra Alexandre Archambault

I first thought the picture of Myra was that of either Malvina Lagasse or Lillie Lagasse, my grandfather’s sisters.

Boy was I wrong!

I have come a long way since 2010 haven’t I.

Look at those eyes…

Myra Alexandre 1877-1958

Frank Archambeault (the grandson I had breakfast with) told me his grandmother had quite a strong character.

He did not have to tell me.

Frank also told me about little Raymond, Myra’s first child.

When Frank, Joe and I visited St. Joseph cemetery I did not know little Raymond Archambeault was resting in peace beside his daughter Marian.

Marian died when she was only 12.

Little Raymond must have been devastated by her death.

I know I would have been.

Myra Alexandre died in 1958 at the age of 81. Marian was four years old. Myra probably played with her granddaughter Marian sometimes like I do with my two grandchildren.

I love to play with my grandchildren probably like Stanislas Lagacé seen here with his grandchildren Marie Rose Elmira and Harvey Lagasse when they were young.

I don’t believe in reincarnation, but if I did, I think I am the reincarnation of Grandpa Lagassy…

Just a thought.

END OF THE OLD EDITED POST

Now you know why I am addicted to old pictures and why I am trying to identify who is this young woman from the past, part of Joe’s collection of old pictures…

I know I told you I was not going to write more articles until September, but I know Ron, Sandy, Joe, and Melissa will understand my passion for genealogy and for writing about it.

Sometimes I get carried away.

Last year Melissa wrote a comment on my blog and I never continued on with that story…

Melissa was someone who was stuck with her Lagacé lineage. She’s an 8th cousin once removed

Hi Pierre,

I haven’t forgotten about you. I’ve been so immersed in all the wonderful information you’ve found for me, that I’ve been neglecting nearly every other aspect of my life. I guess it would be a bit of an understatement to say I have a ‘bit’ of an obsession with genealogy!

I appologize for not getting back to you sooner. I’ve found some more info which you may be interested in checking out yourself.

You see, it’s very dangerous stuff when you answer one of my messages left on Ancestry… You don’t know what is going to hit you just like Keoni who left a message on Facebook about Mitchell LaGasa.

As for Sandy, she had been sending a lot of pictures since we first met on the Internet in 2010.

This was my favorite picture.

sisters

Sandy did not know the identity of the young women, so I saved that picture under the name “sisters”.

This picture was part of the collection someone gave her a long time ago.

My cousin Joe lives in the United States and he also wanted to share a picture with me two years ago.

La société Saint-Jean-Baptiste

You can zoom in by clicking on the image.

His grandfather Joseph Terrien is on the left top row. Joe thought my great-grandfather Stanislas Lagacé (Dennis Lagasse) was also on this picture.

Joe took the time to write me, just as I took the time to write to Melissa.

You see Stanislas Lagacé was Joseph Terrien’s uncle or Joe’s granduncle if you prefer. Joseph Terrien’s mother was Marguerite Alexandre the sister of Henriette Alexandre who was Stanislas Lagacé’s wife.

Joe and I are third cousins!

I know very little about Henriette Alexandre and I would wish I had a picture of her.

I also know very little about “la société Saint-Jean-Baptiste”.

Last year someone who lives in Ste-Anne-des-Plaines sent me a picture. He had little information about it. I knew it was taken around 1906-1907 in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines because I could identify some men in the picture.

circa 1906

You can zoom in by clicking on the image.

Déjà vu?

These men are part of “la société Saint-Jean-Baptiste” in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines where I live. The medals are the same.

Small world.

Footnote

I posted this article by mistake. It was a draft article written last year. I decided to keep it by editing it a little.

This is a post I wrote last year. It was about lovely little Rita. When you read once more Diane’s message, this post is most touching.

thought I would let you know that my aunt Rita Hazel, only daughter of Leo and Ida Combe passed away about a month ago. I think she was 91 or 92. The only sibling left is Henry Combe, my wonderful father.

Carl wrote me again about his ancestors and their relatives.

He had this information about someone named Rita.

He also mentioned the Combe and the Ashley families in his e-mail.

I had to look it up in the more than 100 photos Robin has scanned in 2011 where most of the pictures were of the Bleau and the Combe family.

I found little Rita.

Lovely Rita… circa 1924

Rita is there with her cousins and her two brothers… Joe, with his mouth opened, and Henry on the far right.

thought I would let you know that my aunt Rita Hazel, only daughter of Leo and Ida Combe passed away about a month ago. I think she was 91 or 92. The only sibling left is Henry Combe, my wonderful father.

Rita Hazel

April 23, 1922 – February 7, 2013

Rita Hazel, wife of the late Charles Hazel of Hartford and daughter of the late Ida and Leo Combe of Middletown, died Thursday February 7th at Middlesex Hospital with her loving family by her side. She was born on April 23, 1922. She attended St. John’s School, Woodrow Wilson High School and Morse Business College in Hartford.

In 1966, she took a position at Middlesex Hospital as secretary to the Vice President of Finance, with whom she was with for 24 years. She retired in 1990, after which she volunteered at the Hospitals Information Desk for 18 years.

She is survived by a son, Stephen Hazel and his fiancé, Robin of Portland, a daughter, Sheila White and her husband, Ken of Meriden, a daughter, Donna Milardo and her husband, Dave of East Hampton, her brother, Henry Combe of Old Saybrook and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by three brothers, Anthony Combe of Cromwell, Joseph Combe and Edward Combe of Middletown. She had nine grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.

When you have captions with photographs, you must never jump to conclusions…

Look at this beautiful picture taken in 1919. It’s part of the 100 or so pictures Robin had scanned in 2011. Agnes Alexandre is with her granddaughter Sylvia Marie Combe.

June 31st 1919!

It says 1914 on the second caption…

I will explain later.

What is so wonderful about this picture is that we have reunited people with Agnes Alexandre who was only a small picture in a photo montage of Philomène Lagacé and her daughters that Joe had in his collection.

If I recall correctly Joe had no idea who those people were…

The woman in the middle is Philomène Lagasse, my great-grandaunt. She is the sister of this man Stanislas Lagacé aka Dennis Lagasse. He is the brother of Pierre Lagasse who is Sandy’s great-great-grandfather.

Sandy had one of my great-grandfather’s pictures all along, but she did not know who he was until she contacted me in 2010.

Then those floodgates opened wide…

In Robin’s picture, we see grandma Agnes (Alexandre) Bleau with her granddaughter Sylvia M Combe.

But someone added a note…

1914

Agnes Bleau + daughter

When we look closer we see that the date on the picture is 1919. Louis Joseph Combe married Sylvia Bleau in 1917 so we can’t be in 1914. Furthermore June does not have 31 days. I wonder who wrote the second caption.

It’s fond memories of a loving aunt who made the best apple pie in the world.

I have edited Freida’s wedding picture a bit.

I have more pictures that Robin scanned.

This one where Paul and Pauline are with Harry Bleau.

This is not Pauline Kaminski but another Pauline. She is with her twin brother Paul and their uncle Harry. Not sure about Harry being their uncle. The kids look like they are related to the Combe family. That’s the only clue I have.

Harry and Freida had two daughters Fredrica and Marion. Both died as infants.

So Freida and Harry left no descendants to remember them.

Until Linda Marie searched the Internet for one of her cousins. Then as Robin once said the floodgates opened.